Long Distance
by Shekiah Rosay
Summary: Rosalie's perspective of the conversation that took place when Bella called her from the Isle Esme, and her conversation with Emmett afterwards. She's willing to sarifice anything for a baby, but can he bring himself to help her? -orig title: "The Call"-
1. The Call

Bascially, I was kind of frustrated that Stephenie Meyer cut off Bella's first section in _Breaking Dawn_ when she did. I wanted to know what Rosalie said to Bella on the phone. I was also very curious as to what was going on at the Cullen house when they got the news about Bella's pregnancy. So, this is a piece from Rosalie's perspective that fits between the first Bella section and the Jacob section.

There will be more of this one, if you guys like it. Don't own the Twilight. Enjoy!

* * *

I'd heard all the commotion downstairs, but I still didn't believe the hype.

Evidently, from what I had managed to piece together, my family seemed to be under the impression that dear Bella was knocked up. That's a laugh.

I could hear Alice panicking and Carlisle's voice shaking and Esme dissolving into what we called "vampire tears" for lack of a better description. Evidently this level of emotional uproar was too much for even Jasper to manage. I wouldn't blame him if he'd given up and run back to the vampire wars. With that thought in mind, I couldn't imagine what it would be like if he wasn't there. From the sound of it, the house probably would have burned down already.

Emmett was off hunting. He always came back from his solitary hunting trips so happy and refreshed and energetic. It was cute, really. But walking in on this scene would probably ruin his mood…

I imagine that I too would have been a little bit worried or something, if I actually believed there was a ghost of a chance this whole situation was actually taking place. But I don't, so I'm stuck up here in my room (my stronghold of sanity, actually) waiting for the chaos to die down. Believe me, it will, when they find out it's –SURPRISE!- indigestion.

I can say with unwavering certainty that humans and vampires don't mix like that. At least, they weren't _meant_ to. Prior to a month ago, the one outcome any boy-vampire and girl-human sex ever resulted in was probably a dead human. I must admit, when I found out that Bella survived her wedding night, I was quite impressed with my little brother. But if anybody could do it, Edward could. He's the only person I've ever met who even rivals my own obstinacy.

I heard a soft patter of footsteps on the stairs and looked up to see Alice standing in my doorway. Her hair was even more of a disheveled mess than usual, and her face was a mask of horror.

"Rose, it's awful," she moaned. I rolled my eyes.

"Bella isn't pregnant," I assured her, picking up the nail polish I had put down on my desk upon her arrival. "She's just nauseated. And since a vampire's been doing her cooking, I can't blame her."

"Rosalie, be serious," Alice snapped. "She felt it _move_."

"Humans feel weird visceral movement all the time… they still have all that nasty organ-digestive-system business," I said, making a face. Alice shook her head.

"You're impossible. This is a dire situation – Edward says the baby bump is all hard and cold and she already feels movement after, like, two weeks. That's _not_ normal. This thing could hurt her really badly – their only choice is to come home and talk to Carlisle about getting rid of it."

I hated the way Alice had the nerve to throw around happy, mommy-ish phrases like "baby bump" in my presence. That was a seriously cruel thing to do, regardless of whether it was true or not. And on top of that, she had essentially just told me that Bella was going to let them abort her baby. First, this girl agrees to give up her human life, and now she's volunteering to kill her chance at being a mother – a useless dream I've tried to give up and forget about for almost a century now.

_Damn her!_

I could feel the anger rising up within me, white and hot. Jasper appeared behind Alice as I got to my feet – I must have been verging on a dangerous level of rage, if he sensed it enough to fear for his wife… I ignored with relative ease the waves of calm he was anxiously throwing my direction; I was beyond that point anyway.

"I don't want to hear any more!" I shrieked to both of them. "I _don't_ believe it, and even if I did, that selfish bitch can _die_ for all I care! If she would have the nerve to come back here and parade her baby in front of me – and worse, in front of _Esme_ – before going off and _killing_ it, she can _rot in her human grave!_"

Alice took a slow breath and stepped back.

"Then I guess I'll go, Rosalie," she said coldly as she took Jasper's arm and the two of them walked off down the hall. "I'm sorry – sometimes I forget that you're heartless."

Even if I _were_ in any other mood, those words probably wouldn't have had the power to hurt me. Right now, however, they only justified me further. There is a "my side" and a "Bella's side." Alice can take Bella's side all she wants, but _nothing_ could make me feel the least bit of sympathy for that ungrateful little slut!

Interrupting my thoughts, my cell phone rang. I groaned as I realized that I still couldn't hope for a break from the madness – the ringtone that sounded was Edward's. Great. It occurred to me not to answer it at all, but then I realized that I might miss my only chance at some kind of legitimate explanation. Begrudgingly, I flipped open the phone.

"Hello?" I demanded, a little bit more sharply than I had intended. The voice on the other end of the line temporarily made my breath stop short.

"Rosalie?" it whispered hesitantly. "It's Bella. Please. You have to help me."

I felt a veritable train-wreck of emotional madness in my brain at that moment, not the least of which was dominated by bitter, bitter hatred. I could taste it just from the sound of her voice. Hatred is not a foreign emotion for me, but that didn't make it any less intense. I could have ripped her to shreds, had she not been a continent away.

For some reason, though, I _couldn't_ bring myself to hang up.

"What do you want?" I demanded, being able to think of little else to say. And I was genuinely wondering.

"Rosalie I'm pregnant," she whispered.

_Damn her again!_

"So I've heard," I snapped. "Did you call me to share the happy news?"

I could hear Bella whimper a little bit, and I rolled my eyes for at least the third time that day.

"No. I called because Edward wants to kill it, and I'm scared."

There was a momentary silence.

_This doesn't make any sense!_

"What do you mean?" I asked. "Edward wouldn't kill his own baby. "

Then something else occurred to me. She couldn't have…?

"It _is_ his, isn't it?" I demanded.

Bella's next words tumbled out in a messy rush.

"Of _course_ it is! But Rosalie, he thinks it's going to kill _me_. It's not a normal human baby; it's as much like Edward as it is like me. It's too strong already, and it's only going to get worse. And if Edward wants me to get an abortion bad enough, he and Carlisle will do it, with or without my permission."

"And you don't _want_ them to get rid of it, if it's as dangerous as you say?"

This was the test.

"I couldn't!" Bella cried, but immediately brought her voice back down to whisper-level. "I could never let them hurt it, it's my baby! Yes, I do feel awful, and I might even get really badly hurt like Edward thinks, but abortion is _not_ an option! I thought you, of _all _people, would understand!"

And she had given me the right answer.

Wow.

This, I had not expected. Firstly, I was finally convinced beyond the slightest shadow of a doubt that she was pregnant. There is no way she could talk like that if she wasn't. Those words were mother-words. I'd heard them from my childhood friend Vera, and from Esme, too. Secondly, Bella was actually willing to give her life to save this child.

Well, I certainly wasn't going to stop her.

"What do you want me to do?" I asked her, keeping my voice low.

"You have to promise me one thing," she said shakily. "Save this baby. Whatever it means for me. I don't care. You _can't_ let them hurt it. If it comes down to a fight, so be it. If you're on my side, Emmett is too. I trust you both. And Rosalie…"

She paused, but I still listened, not daring to breathe.

"The same goes… if I die. Which really could happen."

Before I could come up with a response to that – provided there actually was a good one – I heard the phone click off.

Apparently Edward had gotten back.

My thoughts were still an absolute mess. If I had been at a loss for words at the beginning of the conversation, I was completely without hope now. A girl I don't even _like_ wants me to protect her half-vampire baby from its father and grandfather (incidentally _my_ brother and father), and the baby is only here to begin with because said girl made decisions I went out of my way to advise her against in the first place.

And I had agreed.

Damn it all.


	2. Talking it Over

Thanks for the response, guys, as always. :) Hope you enjoy this 2nd chapter - I've decided there's gonna be three total. I kinda like trilogies... but anyway, that doesn't mean I'll still post if I don't get any reviews. :D So basically, it's up to ya'll.

This one's a little short (sorry!) but the third one is gonna be pretty big, so you guys can deal. And besides:

There's Emmett in this chapter. :) YAAAY!

* * *

Just when I thought things couldn't get any more complicated, I heard my window slide open. Emmett crawled through, squaring his broad shoulders to fit through the comparatively narrow opening. He had to be avoiding the situation downstairs, or he would have come in the front door like a normal person. Heaven knows he probably heard it from a mile away. Also, from the downpour outside, he was completely drenched.

So basically, he was going to make a mess of my room and my moral convictions. Fabulous.

The really adorable part is that I was so happy to see him that I didn't even care.

"Oh Emmett!" I exclaimed, throwing my arms around his neck. "I'm so confused!"

As my husband, and the one person who could even begin to understand every aspect of who I was, he was the only one in the world to whom I could admit any doubt or insecurity. He held me close for a few moments, but then gently pushed me away to arm's length.

"Rose, tell me what's going on," he said evenly. "I heard the madness downstairs. Something's wrong – I know it is. I'm scared, baby."

"Bella's pregnant," I whispered, breaking our eye contact. Even though I was focused intently on my closet door, from the corner of my eye I could still see his expression change to utter bewilderment.

"That's impossible," he whispered. I shook my head.

"I thought so too, but then I talked to her. She actually convinced me."

"Tell me everything," he said, leading me over to my antique sofa and sitting down beside me. It occurred to me suddenly that we were both so wet we'd ruin the silk embroidery, but that was a stupid thing to care about in this moment.

"Alice saw something odd and called them. Then Bella was talking to Carlisle, and I guess he told the rest of the family. I only overheard bits and pieces; I was upstairs when it happened. I didn't feel like going down and getting into the middle of all the insanity – especially when I thought they were all delusional anyway. When Alice came to tell me, I exploded at her."

"Well that's understandable," Emmett replied, his eyes narrowing. "That was kind of a heartless thing of her to do – she knows as well as any of us how you feel about babies and everything. And how you feel about Bella, for that matter…"

"Yeah. It didn't help either when she told me that they were coming back here to have Carlisle perform an abortion."

"Bella's going to allow that?" Emmett demanded, his eyes growing wide with horror.

"Well, I certainly thought so when Alice told me," I replied. "But then… Bella called me."

"That's what I thought you told me, but it's so weird. Why you?"

"I wasn't sure at first either," I said, laughing humorlessly. "Pretty weird, huh?"

"Very. Does anybody else know about that part?"

"No, Alice had just left in a fury and everybody else was still running around panicking downstairs. Bella hung up when Edward got back into the room, so he's none the wiser."

"This is getting stranger and stranger," Emmett said softly. "Bella keeping secrets from Edward, calling you… What did she say, anyway?"

"That's the craziest part of all," I replied. "Basically, she's told me that Edward wants her to get an abortion, and naturally, she won't allow it. It's not that simple, though. Evidently Edward's gone crazy, and Bella thinks he and Carlisle would overpower her if necessary."

"This is psycho. Why the hell does Edward want so badly to get rid of the baby?" Emmett demanded. "I mean, it is his, isn't it?"

"Yeah, they're pretty sure," I replied, laughing again, but this time sarcastically. "I mean, according to them, it's some crazy mutant half-vampire baby."

Emmett didn't laugh.

"Bella's pregnant with a vampire?" he asked quietly. I shrugged, suddenly feeling a little guilty for making a joke out of a potentially deadly situation – even if Bella was the one in question. Ugh. Emmett was the only one with the power to make me feel that.

"Don't tell me you're Pro-Choice now too," I groaned. Emmett shook his head.

"I haven't even heard the whole story yet. But it's beginning to make a little more sense now, as much as I hate to say it. I see why Edward is so worried. If it's a vampire, it's pretty much going to…"

"Eat her from the inside out," I finished for him. He nodded, still hardly taking everything in.

"Isn't she worried?"

"She's an expectant mother, Emmett, vampire or otherwise," I sighed. "All she cares about is her baby. And rightly so. She's so afraid they're going to take it away from her. She called and made me promise to protect it – at all costs."

Emmett sucked in a deep, slow breath.

"And what did you say?"

"I agreed, of course," I replied. I had made eye contact again after I told him the news, but now I was definitely staring at the floor.

"There's another catch, too," I added quietly.

"What?"

"In the event of Bella dying, which is increasingly likely – she admitted it herself – I promised to take care of the baby. Just think, Emmett. Us – parents. Isn't that what we've always wanted?"


	3. No Going Back

Time for the last and the bestest chapter. Like seriously, I friggin love this one. It wasn't originally going to be so long, but it kinda got out of hand. Rosalie has many interesting thoughts, after all... I love the chance to get in her head! Thanks so, so much for reading - I'm glad you guys like it too. Thanks especially to my reviewers, who indulge my need for constructive criticism and the knowledge that people out there are interested!

And those of you who have been reading all along but haven't reviewed, please do! I want to know what ya'll think. :)

* * *

The expression Emmett gave me was thoughtful, but somehow sad and horrified too.

"At that price?" he asked softly.

I bit my lip.

"Don't make this more difficult than it is," I finally replied. "If Bella dies, we take care of her baby. It makes sense. Even humans make agreements like that."

"That's true, Rose, but our circumstances are completely different. Think about it: are you going to stop Edward and Carlisle from saving Bella's life?"

"I'm going to stop them from killing that baby!" I snapped back. He was trying to make a valid point, but if I gave in and listened, I would feel guilt. Guilt would dissolve my convictions, and I needed those badly.

"We don't know what kind of creature this baby is going to be," Emmett insisted, remaining calm as always. "It could be a monster, a weird half-breed that stays a baby forever. It could be an immortal child, Rosalie! Think of the implications of that! Is it right to risk Bella's life for some phenomenon we don't know anything about? Tell me honestly - does she deserve that?"

"But what if it's an innocent baby, Emmett?" I demanded. "What if it's a helpless infant that's going to die because it has a weakling mother? Does it deserve that?"

The silence in my room resumed, and the sounds of people moving around and talking in rushed, anxious tones floated up from the living room downstairs.

"This is too complicated," Emmett finally sighed.

"Any way you look at it, I promised Bella I'd protect her baby," I said conclusively. "I'm not breaking that promise, even if it means going against the rest of the coven in a legitimate fight. Would you side with me?"

"You know I'd have to, baby," Emmett replied. "I'm your husband. But that doesn't mean I feel like this is right."

Time for a new approach. He needed more help seeing this situation from my perspective. Our perspective. It was entirely understandable. As a man, he wouldn't see the desperate void in our lives as plainly as I did.

"Em," I whispered tenderly, putting my hand over his. "Don't think so much. It only makes it harder. We could be parents; have a little son or daughter. We could name it whatever you like, and take it to baseball games. We could have our own house and be almost a normal family. Tell me that isn't worth fighting for."

I saw the corners of a pained smile appearing on Emmett's face, and knew that if we were humans, we'd both be crying from the emotional intensity of this moment.

He nodded slowly, squeezing my hand.

"Okay Rose," he whispered in reply, sounding as though he was hating the way he felt but couldn't deny himself the possibility I had just described, under any circumstances. "I'm in."

* * *

Sitting in the back of Carlisle's car on the way to the airport, I took advantage of the last few minutes I had to spend privately with my thoughts. Once we got close enough, Edward would be able to read them, and if I wasn't careful, this whole scheme would be stopped in its tracks quite abruptly.

Was it really a scheme, though?

I wasn't sure if I thought so.

There was some kind of undeniably conniving element to what I was doing, although I was not in the wrong when one looked at the surface of the situation. I had made a promise to my sister-in-law to protect her child, and I planned to honor that promise to the last. There was nothing disreputable about that in the least. Hell, it made me sound like a saint.

So why did I feel so conflicted? Was it because I thought I was killing her for my own benefit?

I wasn't killing her, though!

I just wasn't protecting her from a fate she'd brought on herself. When I thought of how many times and how many ways I'd tried to warn her about what she was doing, all the guilt subsided and the anger and justification returned. She was getting what she wanted all along. How many times had I watched her listen longingly to stories about our family as newborns, with our incorrigible lusts for human blood and flashing red eyes? Even at the wedding, I watched her gaze jealously at the Denali girls, undoubtedly coveting their unnaturally pale skin and ice-cold flesh. Yes, Bella had ended up here by her own fault, the selfish little bitch. I had done all I could.

But enough brooding. I had to walk through the logical aspects of my plan.

We would get to the airport grounds, and on the off-chance that they had landed, I would suspend all planning immediately. I had already come up with ways to occupy my mind. It would be a wise choice to think dirty thoughts about Emmett. Edward would tune those out quickly, so I would be safe if any baby-thoughts sneaked in despite my efforts. Besides, he would consider that train of thought normal for me. If I did something like recite a Cyrillic alphabet to keep my mind occupied, he would automatically assume something was going on.

We would wait around the terminal for hours – Alice had already informed us that their flight would be delayed – and there wouldn't even be any shopping at the duty-free store because I could already tell that Alice and Esme would rather sit around and nervously bite their fingernails, and I would be stuck doing it with them. I didn't want to look insensitive or give them any reason to question my motives.

Finally, around 3:30, Bella and Edward would get off the plane, and I would find some excuse to get close to the former. I had initially thought I might rush forward to take her bag, but she'll be with Edward, so there's no chance she'll be carrying her own luggage to begin with. Oh well. I had eventually decided just to insist that she looked faint and run forward to steady her. The family would be weirded out by the fact that I cared, of course, but by that point it wouldn't matter. I could let my thoughts flow freely again then, too.

Because I would have my prize.

From the moment I clasp her hand, nobody – not even her husband – will be able to get within five feet of her without my approval. Her fate will be mine – well, mine and hers, in theory – to decide. The battle will be half-won.

So there.

* * *

Finally, after all the tedium I had anticipated and more, the not-so-happy couple walked through the gate. I must admit, Edward looked ten times worse than any of us possibly could have pictured him – except Alice, I suppose, whose powers had given her the opportunity to brace herself. Edward's hair was a terrible mess, sticking up in all directions, and he was pale even on our standards. His jet-black eyes seemed deeply sunken in. He continually stared at the ground, but I had no desire to make eye contact anyway.

Bella didn't look too much better. Her hair wasn't wavy like usual – it was stringy and flat from travel, pulled out of her way in a careless side ponytail. Her skin was beginning to break out, and she looked skinner even than usual.

Except for the bump.

My first feeling one was of terrifyingly powerful envy, but as I continued to look at her, I felt a chill run down my spine. I couldn't deny that she looked sickeningly unnatural. Her stomach was round, but I could tell even from a distance that it was rock-hard. The blue cap-sleeve shirt she wore – one of the simpler tops Alice had picked out – hung off her skinny frame rather pathetically, except for the way it stretched over her midsection. The forlorn expression in her eyes reminded me of a five-year-old who had fallen on the playground and skinned her knee.

Needless to say, the proverbial pregnancy "glow" was not at all present.

I watched Bella place a hand over her belly and bite her lip nervously. Casting Edward a look of guilt – though he wasn't looking in her direction anyway – she suddenly closed her eyes and took off at a run towards where we stood. Before any of us could determine what was going to happen, she threw herself into my arms.

I recovered quickly from my shock and placed a hand behind her head. As I held her close, I could feel the bump, which was just as stony as I had imaged, bore into my own abdomen. Swallowing the jealousy that threatened to consume me, I tried to offer as motherly and innocent an expression as I could.

"Don't worry," I whispered, fully aware that my family could hear – and honestly wanting them to. "Your baby is safe with me."

After a well-acted few moments of stroking her hair, I looked up, knowing very well that the game was over. And I had come out on top. I tried to keep my expression from growing too smug, but probably failed. Bella had unknowingly played her part so perfectly that all conniving on my part had become unnecessary. How convenient.

In my haze of triumph, I allowed myself to look up at Edward. His eyebrows were narrowed in intense concentration and bewilderment. I could tell that he was shamelessly racing through my thoughts, but I let him. There was no stopping me now.

As I watched his expression of confusion turn into a mask of horror and rage, I almost felt a twinge of guilt.

Almost.


End file.
